The Netherlands government as announced plans to start a Dutch abortion fund in response to President Trump reinstating an executive memorandum known as the "global gag rule" this week. The "gag rule" refuses U.S. government funding to international organizations who provide, promote, or even offer information about abortions—even though U.S. governmental funding can't be used for abortion services anyway, per the Helms Amendment. In response to the rule's reinstatement, Dutch officials intend to start a fund to finance projects relating to birth control access, abortion access, and women's education in developing countries.

Dutch officials criticized Trump's choice to reinstate the gag rule, which was originally introduced by former president Ronald Reagan in 1984. The executive memorandum has been rescinded and reintroduced several times since then.

"This decision has far-reaching consequences above all for the women it affects, who should be able to decide for themselves if they want a child, but also for their husbands and children and for society as a whole," Lilianne Ploumen, Dutch minister for foreign trade and development cooperation, said in a statement. "Banning abortion does not reduce the number of abortions. It leads to more irresponsible practices in back rooms and more maternal deaths."

If history is anything to go by, the gag rule actually does not lower the number of abortions. In fact, it leads to more unintended pregnancies and unsafe abortions.

"Providers are forced to choose between taking U.S. foreign aid for family planning or providing women with all the reproductive health care [services] they need," Debra Hauser, Advocates for Youth president, previously told SELF. "Either providers will have less funding to offer women modern methods of contraception, or they will be unable to provide them information, referral or abortion care. If providers choose to continue offering women all of the services they need, they will not be able to receive U.S. family planning foreign aid—[meaning] women will lose access to modern contraception, and the number of unintended pregnancies may rise."

Ploumen hopes that governments, businesses, and organizations would donate to the Dutch abortion fund.

"We have to make up as much as possible for this financial blow, with a broad-based fund that governments, companies, and civil society organizations can donate to, so that women can continue to make their own decisions about their own bodies," Ploumen said.